By Carl Stagner

“When God’s people come together in his name, amazing things will happen.” The sentiment expressed by Community Park Church of God in Bryant, Arkansas, reflects the heart of those who walk by faith, especially when it doesn’t make sense. When a need is made known, Jesus people choose to step up to the plate, meeting the need by whichever means necessary. They’re quite familiar with the stories of Jesus as recorded in the gospels; Jesus people walk like he walked, love like he loved, and serve like he served. In the case of a recent challenge to combat hunger among local children, Community Park Church of God demonstrated just how important it is to give like he gave.

The idea came out of the men’s group called Hands of Faith at Community Park Church of God. One of the leaders, Mel Kirby, heard about a feeding program in the local (Benton) school system called Bright Futures. That program sought to bridge the gap between one school year and the next—especially concerning nutrition; after all, many families rely on school meals for daily sustenance. “They would provide fourteen meals and seven snacks a week to these children that, through the school year, qualified for free lunches,” Pastor KC Graves explains.

KC Graves pictured hosting the church’s fishing derby this year.

But what could a modest-size congregation do to really make a difference? They could do something—and leave it in God’s hands to multiply. And that kind of obedience is of infinite value in God’s economy. Especially when faith activates generosity, the kind of impact the few can make for the many is particularly notable.

“We actually took a love offering to increase our buying power, to buy in bulk,” Pastor KC explains of the process. “Just under $1,000 was collected in a single offering.”

Praise the Lord! Sometimes you’ve got to come face to faith with hunger in our world, and that’s what Community Park Church of God in Bryant, Arkansas, did. In so doing, they surely whetted appetites for spiritual nourishment, too.

“The Benton School district was very thankful for the donation,” KC reports. “They serve 102 children weekly and there is a waiting list to be in the Bright Futures program.”

Learn more about the Church of God movement at www.JesusIsTheSubject.org.